Countries

Branding and positioning are no longer restricted to companyâ€™s brands. The Anholt-GMI Nation Brand Index explains why we prefer German cars, Italian design or go on holiday rather in Canada than Belgium. Now even governments can apply the marketing lessons.

Disney â€œGoes Eastâ€ with the opening of the first Disney Park in China. The stakes are big, and probably for the first time in Disney history, the immutable rules of the park are changed. Disney is opening itself to cultural differences and adapts its park to China.

Erwin Wijman carried out a study on first name branding in the Netherlands. First names are more and more used for brands and can definitely influence the positioning. According to the type of company they can be interesting and increase market shares. Whereas the most favourite ones are short ones, not all first names are without risk.

About countries

Marketing no longer stops at the border of a country. New markets are continuously being approached and new strategies are developed. Each country has its own particularities that are to be accepted if you want to succeed. But countries can also have an image that can be used as an opportunity in a strategy. You will have to take both side of the stories into account.